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ACT2CH33 - Aftermath
🕑 Added 2023-06-17 18:09:09 +0000 UTCMeanwhile inside the Eagle’s Nest…
“How do you reckon he did that?” asked Terry Boot.
Michael Corner looked at his best friend Anthony Goldstien as the two of them shrugged at each other. After the events of the DADA class, the Ravenclaw nest had been in turmoil, especially in the light of the duel.
Sue Li, who was widely regarded as the best duelist in the entire House since third year, sat absolutely silent. Over the last few years, she had been the unbeatable duellist within Ravenclaw House, and perhaps within all of Hogwarts, except for save a couple of seventh-years. But today, Harry Potter had demonstrated casting speed, reflexes and most importantly, advanced hex deflection to a degree that made her self-conscious, making her wonder if she was scoring goals in an empty post all this time.
Harry Potter had stuck to second-year spells at best, and utterly trashed all four Slytherins. In fact, he wasn’t even duelling them, he was playing with him. The duellist in her had wanted to get up and get him to trade spells with her, just to see what he was really capable of.
Then he had cast the Patronus charm, and everything went to hell.
That thing… Sue was sure it was going to give her nightmares for quite a while.
And it was his Patronus.
“I told you he was dangerous,” claimed Cho. Her friend Marietta Edgecombe nodded vigorously.
“Oh shut it,” claimed Sue. “Get your panties out of the twist, Chang. You’re just mad about what happened with Cedric.”
“I think Potter’s right, you know,” said Corner. “He was chosen as Triwizard Champion for a reason.”
“Yes, because he cheated and put his name into it,” Cho snapped.
“That may be,” said Corner, “but so what? Say he’s lying about not putting his name in the goblet. But that doesn’t mean that the goblet has to pick his name, right? But it did. It selected him.”
“He must have hoodwinked it,” claimed Edgecombe.
“Exactly my point,” said Corner. “You can’t honestly tell me that you weren’t depressed about the Headmaster’s ‘seventeen-and-above’ rule? Tell me you didn’t start looking for options to get past Professor Dumbledore’s age-line?”
“So you’re saying he cheated?” asked Boot.
“I’m saying that he succeeded. Whatever method he used, it worked. C’mon guys, we’re Ravenclaws. If nothing else, Potter’s shown himself to be more skilled than any of us if he managed to hoodwink a centuries-old artefact. How many of us can claim the same?”
“Or maybe all of this is a hoax, and the Headmaster put his name intentionally,” sneered Cho. “Maybe Headmaster Karkaroff was right. Dumbledore wanted to give Hogwarts two bites of the apple.”
Sue snorted. “You’ve really got it bad, haven’t you, Chang? If the Headmaster really wanted to give Hogwarts two bites of the apple like you say, wouldn’t he have chosen a seventh-year? And even if he did, and he chose Potter, it means he knew Potter would be a far better Champion than any of us. And surprise, surprise! He freaking won the tournament.”
“By cheating!”
“Really?” drawled Sue. “Did you see him cheating against the dragon?”
“Well no, but —”
“Maybe underwater? Even Cedric told us that Potter reached there first and only got second place ‘cause he wanted to save Delacour’s sister.”
“That’s not the —”
“Then what is the point?” she snapped. “We get it. You’re angry. You got betrothed to Cedric and shit happened. But this constant harping about Potter being a megalomaniac is hurting my ears. Cor, you’re worse than Draco Malfoy.”
Cho growled and looked away.
“Seriously Chang,” added Mandy Brocklehurst. “If I were you, I wouldn’t have been a pain in Potter’s arse right now. He’s a Noble Lord and a Warlock, not to mention the Triwizard Winner and the Boy-Who-Lived. And we’ve all seen how he was mooning after you last year while you danced with Diggory at Yule.”
“What are you saying?” asked Cho, narrowing her eyes.
“She’s saying that you should stop being a stupid bint and open your eyes,” said Sue. “Potter’s the Lord of one Noble House, heir to another, and is marrying the Lady of a third. Look at how Susan Bones is fawning at him. And then there’s that veela Delacour. Instead of being a stupid, angry hag, you’d have better gotten his attention and used him as your ticket to a luxurious life.”
For once, Cho did not retort.
“Oh piss off,” said Edgecombe. “Potter’s a liar. He might have tricked the Wizengamot, but the Ministry won’t just let him get away.”
“You know,” said Corner. “For someone you claim to be a fame-hungry schoolboy, Potter’s managed to trick a lot of important things and people. The Goblet of fire, the other Champions and now the Wizengamot. Makes you wonder how much of that is trickery and how much is pure skill.”
“Yeah, maybe you should ask him how he does that,” sneered Edgecombe, “what with all the tongue-wagging. Merlin, you’re practically a Weasley.”
Corner scoffed.
“Weasley or not,” claimed Anthony. “I’d say going to Potter is a better option than Umbridge. For Merlin’s sake, he’s a Warlock, and he obviously has a ton of power and skill. I doubt even Li could stand a chance against him. No offence, Li.”
“None taken,” said Sue, frowning. “I’m actually hoping to test myself against Potter. And let’s face it, this is our OWL year, and we’ve all tried sucking up to Umbridge for the past month. We all know how that turned out.”
“What are you saying?” asked Boot.
“I’m saying that if Umbridge won’t teach us anything, why not go to someone that can?”
“You mean… Potter?”
Inside the Badger’s Lair…
“Aww! Snap!” cursed Ernie, as he lost to Allister Abercrombie for the fifth time. “Today’s just not my day, ya know! Why have I been losing to literally everyone lately?”?”
Susan rolled her eyes. Ernie had been instrumental in today’s little event, and the best part? He didn’t even realise that he had been used in a prank orchestrated by a Gryffindor. In hindsight, it wasn’t very Hufflepuff of her to manipulate a fellow friend, but it was for the greater good. At least after the day’s display, nobody would question Harry’s competency.
And honestly, she was still a little surprised at how quickly everything had transpired. She had been flabbergasted when Harry had approached her, while hiding under his invisibility cloak. The two of them had met in an unused classroom, where he had laid out his plan to orchestrate something big and flashy against Umbridge. Years of protocol training at her aunt’s knee had taught Susan to spot an opportunity when she saw one, and this was an opportunity disguised as a prank, and she had been quick to join the bandwagon.
The pureblood heiress in her recognised this was a way to get Harry to owe her one. Maybe tutor her friends in Defence. Plus, it cost her little to help him, and knowing him, he’d make it entertaining.
“I still can’t believe he took on all of them single-handedly,” exclaimed Hannah animatedly. “Did you see how he was walking through the spells? Like weaving left and right and walking through them like sorcerers in those story books do.”
“Yeah, you’re probably one step away from joining his fan club,” claimed Zacharias Smith.
“Better that than to try to suck up to Umbridge,” Hannah quipped. “I heard she invited you for an evening tea. Isn’t that right, Zach?”
“She’s the Senior Undersecretary,” claimed Smith. “Nobody in the right mind would want to piss her off. Not all of us have Potter’s luck.”
Susan rolled her eyes again. The Smiths had always been fence-sitters at best, paying homage to the one in power to stay afloat. His mum Sarah Smith had recently risen as the Head of the Magical Maintenance Department, and rumour was that she had a lot of ‘fudge’ for dinner from time to time.
“C’mon Susan,” said Zacharias. “You of all people should know how pretentious Potter is. He’s supposed to be married to Greengrass, but everyone knows he’s fucking the veela behind her back.”
“Hardly,” said Hannah, “and Greengrass knows of it. For all we know, Delacour will end up as Lady Potter.” she elbowed Susan. “At least, unless someone takes an initiative.”
Susan went crimson. Her crush on Harry Potter was the worst-kept secret in all of Hufflepuff. That Harry looked so very much like his father James had led to all sorts of rumours, about how he’d marry a redhead to become the James and Lily Potter of their generation.
And then Daphne Greengrass had swooped in from nowhere and tied the Boy Wonder into a betrothal. And if that wasn’t enough, Fleur Delacour, veela had started vying for his attention since the start of summer. Susan’s personal opinion was that being defeated by the fourteen-year-old in the Triwizard tournament had spurred the veela to claim him.
But still, it wasn’t too late. She had read the papers. Daphne would be married to the Black family and serve as the Lady Greengrass, while Harry would take over as Regent when they both finished their NEWTs, or Daphne’s father sought retirement, whichever came first. And the Charter of the Ancient and now Noble House of Potter would not allow a creature-born to become the Lady, which meant that the slot for the Lady Potter was still in the running.
It would be hard work, but since when did Hufflepuffs shy from hard work? Plus, Harry had come to her for help, not Ron Weasley or Hermione Granger, but her. She doubted that Harry was oblivious of her interest in him, or about the rumours running around the school about how he was secretly dating her.
After all, she had taken great pains to start those rumours herself.
Maybe this event with Umbridge meant something? His godfather was dating her aunt, which meant that they would be seeing each other in and out of school. Who could tell, maybe things could change between them too? She had time. They were just fifteen after all.
“Whatever is going on between me and Harry is our private matter,” she scoffed. “But it’s obvious he’s the best at DADA. I think we should ask him to teach us.”
“Teach us?” asked Ernie.
“You know, personal instruction. Tutoring, of sorts.”
“And why would he agree to that?” asked Abercrombie. “Potter isn’t exactly short of gold. He’s probably richer than Malfoy at the moment.”
“Not probably richer, he is richer than Malfoy,” said Hannah. “Witch Weekly ran an article on it. Between House Black and House Potter, Harry’s wealth is easily comparable with the likes of House Malfoy and House Lestrange. And that’s without counting his marriage to House Greengrass, which, alongside House Selwyn, is literally the richest family out there. So yeah, he’s rolling in gold.”
“It doesn’t have to be for payment,” Susan insisted. “I know him. He’d help us if we just asked him. And he doesn’t have to be the only one to teach others. We could make it a club, maybe an inter-house one.”
“Like the gobstones club?” asked Ernie.
Hannah snorted.
“Yes,” said Susan. “Only one for studying. We can get people who are best at their subjects to help others. And those that are struggling in the middle can help with management.”
“I’ll ask Corner,” said Abercrombie. “He’d probably be in.”
“Entwhistle too,” suggested Ernie. “Not sure how Su Li will feel about it though.”
“Li’s got a good head on her shoulders,” Susan replied sagely. “She could spearhead duelling practice with Harry. We just need to make sure that no one has too much workload while getting everyone personal instruction. I’ve even talked with Hermione Granger, and she says that there are a lot of Gryffindors who want the same.”
“Are you sure you don’t want personal instruction from just Harry?” Hannah asked, wagging her eyebrows.
“Well,” said Ernie, “we’ve gotten some really bad teachers in the past. Compared to that, how bad can Harry be?”
“He won’t be bad,” Susan promised. “He’ll be the best.”
“You’re ignoring one vital part,” said Abercrombie. “Umbridge. She doesn’t look like the sort to allow a club like this. Least of all one run by Potter.”
Susan gave her an arched look. “What do you think this is, Abercrombie? Some kind of Ministry resistance group? I’m talking of an inter-house student club where Harry just happens to help others with defence.
“Maybe we can ask Delacour to join it to teach Arithmancy?” asked Abercrombie. “I mean, she’s an assistant professor.”
“Su Li can help with duelling,” suggested Ernie.
“Think we can get Greengrass for transfiguration? Or maybe Goldstien for Charms?” asked Hannah.
“Right. You want him to charm you off for a Hogsmeade date,” teased Susan.
Hannah blushed.
“We could even ask the other years to join in, you know,” said Abercrombie.
Susan shook her head. “Not a great idea. Sixth and seventh years have their own studies. Adding those to OWLs will only complicate it.”
“But they’ve already passed their OWLs,” said Hannah. “They’d have experience to share.”
Susan bit her lip.
“That makes sense,” agreed Ernie. “They don’t have to join, but if they come in, no one’s stopping them.”
“I guess…” said Susan evasively.
“Ṭhough if you want to include Greengrass. You might want to add Slytherins too,” said Ernie. “And we don’t want any stupid Gryffindor-Slytherin rivalry there.”
“Tosh, Ernie,” scoffed Susan. “Greengrass is Potter’s fiance. And if Slytherins willingly want to join a study group with other Houses, nobody’s stopping them. Why, if Daphne joins in, we’ll have a better chance of convincing Harry.”
“Do you think that’s really a good idea?” asked Hannah, frowning. “I mean if Greengrass is there, would Harry even… you know?”
Susan frowned at the unsaid implication of her words. But unless she had completely misread everything, Harry did not choose between Daphne and Fleur Delacour, and just sort of went ahead with both. At the same time, both girls pretended that the other didn’t exist, and didn’t so much as even acknowledge each other in the hallways. If she could play them against each other then perhaps…
“As I said,” Susan replied thoughtfully. “It’s a study group. No need to complicate it with anything else.”
“You really mean that?” asked Hannah sceptically.
“What else would I mean?” Susan defended. “I’ve already talked to Hermione Granger about it. With any luck, we’ll get the entire thing sanctioned by Professor Dumbledore. I don’t see how this could go wrong.”
….
….
An excerpt from the next day’s Daily Prophet…
MINISTRY SEEKS EDUCATIONAL REFORM
DOLORES UMBRIDGE APPOINTED FIRST-EVER ‘HIGH INQUISITOR.’
In a surprise move last night, the Ministry of Magic passed a new legislation giving itself an unprecedented level of control over Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry.
“The Minister has been growing uneasy about the events at Hogwarts for some time,” claimed Ursula Edgecombe, Junior Under Secretary to the Minister. “He’s now responding to concerns voiced by anxious parents, who feel the school may be moving in a direction they do not approve of.”
This is not the first time in recent weeks that Minister Fudge has used new laws to effect drastic improvements at the wizarding school. Following the enactment of controversial Clause 159 by Hogwarts Governor Board, the Ministry of Magic passed the Educational Decree Number Twenty-Two to position the current Senior Undersecretary to the Minister, Madam Dolores Umbridge, for the position of the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor.
“Madam Umbridge’s posting was a part of a three-step process,” said Minister Fudge. “Her initial role was to step in as Defence instructor and provide me with an infield perspective of the Hogwarts situation. Given the high-profile names involved in this mess, we wanted a detailed study to properly assess the issue.”
Following with the previous decree, the Ministry of Magic has passed the Educational Decree Number Twenty-Three, activating the second-step of the reform process, by appointing Madam Umbridge as the first-ever ‘HIGH INQUISITOR’.
“This is an exciting new phase in the Minister’s plan to get to grips with what some are calling the ‘falling standards’ of Hogwarts,” said Alecto Carrow, Head of OWL Examinations Authority. “The Inquisitor’s new powers include inspection of her fellow educators and making sure they are up to snuff. Professor Umbridge has been offered this role in addition to her own teaching post, and we’re delighted at her acceptance.”
“I feel much easier in my mind now that I know that Albus Dumbledore’s hiring process is being subjected to fair scrutiny,” said famous philanthropist Lucius Malfoy, from his Wiltshire Mansion last night. “Many of us have been concerned about Dumbledore’s eccentric decisions over the years, and are glad to know that the Ministry will now be keeping an eye on things.”
It is to be noted that among those eccentric decisions, Albus Dumbledore has hired werewolf Remus Lupin, half-giant and former Azkaban inmate Rubeus Hagrid, and a delusional former Auror and Hit-wizard. Rumours about, of course, that Albus Dumbledore, has been asked to retire from his position as Supreme Mugwump at the International Confederation of Wizards. Is this proof that perhaps the man has also grown unfit for managing the education of Wizarding Britain’s future?
Wizengamot member Tiberius Odgen has resigned in protest at the introduction of the High Inquisitor position at Hogwarts. “Hogwarts is a school, not an outpost of Cornelius Fudge’s office,” said Griselda Marchbanks, former Head of OWL Examinations Authority. “This is a further disgusting attempt to discredit Albus Dumbledore.”
(For a full account of Madam Marchbanks’ alleged links to subversive goblin groups, turn to Page 17)
Susan put down the paper and ostensibly sighed.
Ernie turned to her triumphantly. “You were saying?”
In the Lion’s Den…
The Gryffindor Common Room was jam packed with people. From Lee Jordan sitting on the window ledge, to Hermione standing in front of the fireplace with Ron and Ginny on either side, while Angelina and Katie sat on the couch, with the twins sitting on either end. The rest of the students, most of them a haphazard collection of fourth and sixth years, with the occasional firstie, sat lounging in the chairs. There was only one fifth-year student missing in the entire meeting, who was interestingly, the subject of this little meeting.
Harry Potter.
“So this afternoon, I was pulled aside by Susan Bones,” said Hermione. “Those of you who don’t know her, she’s from Hufflepuff and her aunt is the Director of Magical Law Enforcement. She was asking about forming an inter-house study group to help everyone prepare for OWL examinations.”
Hermione almost cringed as she finished that sentence, for over half of the common room residents dumped their interest in whatever she had to say.
“Well…” she continued tentatively. “Umbridge isn’t exactly teaching us, so we might as well do it ourselves.”
“Do what ourselves?” asked Fred, or George. She could never tell.
“Learn the Defence Against the Dark Arts ourselves, and the others. I think this club is a great idea.”
“Come off it,” groaned Ron. “You want us to do extra work? I’m already behind on homework as is, Hermione.”
“You’re always behind on homework, Ron, but this is more important than that.”
“More important than homework?” asked Ron, peering at her. “Who are you and what have you done with Hermione Granger?”
Ginny snorted.
Hermione scowled.
“Stop being silly! You know this is important! It’s not just about OWLs. It’s about preparing ourselves. About what’s waiting for us out there. It’s about making sure we can defend ourselves. If we don’t learn anything for a whole year then —”
“Oh come on,” claimed Mclaggen. “Don’t start on the entire ‘You-Know-Who is back’ tripe.”
Ron glared at him. “He is back!”
“Says who? Your friend Potter who chose to save his girl from falling over winning the match?”
“Can you shut up about that already?” scoffed Angelina. “Potter’s been winning snitches in almost every game he’s played. The only thing you’ve been winning is a chance to suffer my right hook if you don’t shut up.”
“Didn’t you see, Mclaggen? Greengrass was spasming on her broom. If that bludger hit her, then she’d have been seriously injured.” Katie admonished.
“And what of it?” asked Mclaggen. “She’s from Slytherin. If her own mates don’t care about her, why should we?”
“She’s Harry's fiance, arsehole!” said one of the twins.
“Yes, and he lost our team the match because of her.”
“Yes, the same team that’s gonna throw you out if you utter one more word, Mclaggen,” bellowed Angelina.
That shut him up.
Turning to Hermione, Angelina said, a little softly this time. “Don’t mind him. And yeah, I get your concerns, mate. Even I’m concerned about my NEWTs. But I hardly think looking up at jinxes in the library and trying to practise them would make any difference.”
“I agree,” said Hermione. “We’ve gone past the stage where we can just learn things from books. We need a teacher, a proper one, who can show us how to use the spells and correct us if we’re going wrong.”
“If you’re asking for Flitwick to teach us….” began Lee.
Katie snorted. “Flitwick is too busy to even attend his own House. What makes you think he’s gonna have time for an extra Defence class for Gryffindors?”
“Who do you have in mind, Hermione?” asked Angelina.
Hermione smiled. “It’s obvious, isn’t it? I’m talking about Harry. Even Susan and the rest of the Hufflepuffs want him.”
“Potter?” asked Mclaggen, looking at her like she had grown an extra head. “Why would I want to learn from Potter? He’s a bloody fifth-year.”
“Yeah, the same fifth-year that won the Triwizard tournament as a fourth year,” retorted Ron. “Harry’s worth ten of you, Mclaggen.”
“Why you…” Mclaggen began, but one of the twins cut him off.
“I get that,” said Lavender Brown. “But wouldn’t it be better asking the seventh years?” she looked at Angelina who seemed all too interested in gazing at the floor. “I mean, you guys have already passed your OWLs.” She looked back at Hermione. “And you’ve already half the spells committed to memory and can perform them flawlessly, so you can teach the juniors.”
“Harry’s the best in defence,” Ron began.
“Nobody’s contending that, Ronald,” said Lavender. “We all saw with our own eyes what he’s capable of. But we’ve hardly ever seen him in Gryffindor tower since the start of term. He’s like having a million things to do. Do you really think he’d have time to teach us?”
“And even if he has,” claimed Mclaggen. “I haven’t seen him do anything extraordinary. Yeah, he fought off Malfoy and his goons, but so what? Malfoy’s hardly a stellar duelist.”
“Were you sleeping under a rock last year?” Ron began angrily. “He fucking on the Triwizard. He defeated the dragon —”
“By outflying it, not fighting it. The second task was just swimming, and the third one…” he trailed off, a sinister expression on his face. “Well, wouldn’t we all want to know exactly what happened in the Third task with Cedric?”
Ron growled.
“Right," drawled Hermione. "Because it obviously doesn't take nerves of steel to even consider outflying a dragon. You can't even stop a flying quaffle." She smirked at his outraged expression. "but forget the Triwizard,” countered Hermione. “Back in our first year, he defeated Professor Quirrel.”
“Really?” drawled Mclaggen. “You see him do it?”
“Well no, but —”
“Then how do you know he defeated a professor? Not just anyone, but a professor? As a first-year?” Mclaggen looked around for support. “Come on, guys, don’t tell me I’m the only one with eyes. The Boy-Who-Lived is a myth of Dumbledore’s making.”
“What? You think that the Dark Lord just came to the Potter’s home and decided to drop dead?” retorted Ginny.
“I’m not saying that, but there’s nothing nobody can tell us about what happened that night either. It’s just… I’ve heard so many rumours about Potter but despite all of that, he’s a mid-level scorer. How can someone like that defeat a professor? Yeah, he speaks Parseltongue, a dark wizard’s trait. But finding the Chamber of Secrets? Killing a basilisk? Don’t make me laugh.”
“He did kill the basilisk,” retorted Ginny. “I was there.”
“Oh, you saw him kill it, did you?”
“No,” said Ginny, scowling. “I was possessed, remember? Ron and Harry got down the Chamber, but Ron got stuck outside. And when I woke up, Harry was there, with a dead basilisk on the floor and one of his hands bleeding from the basilisk’s bite. The Headmaster’s phoenix then healed him and got us out of the Chamber.”
“How big was this basilisk?”
“Easily seventy feet.”
‘Cor, stop pulling my leg. You’re telling me a twelve-year-old slew a seventy-foot basilisk? Pull the other one.”
“Ginny’s right,” said Parvati, surprising Hermione. “It’s supposed to be that long.”
“Oh?” Mclaggen arched his brows. “And how do you know that?”
“‘Cause my father’s hired to harvest its parts from the Chamber of Secrets.”
Hermione blinked. “Erm, what?”
“My father’s hired to harvest its parts from the Chamber,” Parvati repeated. “He’s involved in the harvesting and trade of magical animal parts. He asked us, and I quote, about this ruddy big basilisk that he has to harvest, for which he’ll come to Hogwarts on Halloween. He told me that Greengrass’s dad hired him and the rest of his crew for this. Oh, and something about a Sanskrit interpreter but that’s neither here nor there.”
Hermione arched an eyebrow. “I didn’t know about any of this.”
“Blimey,” claimed Parvati. “I thought you knew. Harry’s gonna take the team down to the Chamber and harvest the basilisk. He’s even donating half of the profits to Hogwarts and those that were affected by it.”
Hermione didn’t even know what to think of that. Every single time she thought she was catching up, a new side of Harry Potter would turn up and throw her out of the loop. The Harry she had known over the years had never so much as seen his gold as fortune so much as a gift from his dead parents. Something that paid for his Hogwarts education and allowed him to live off a comfortable life after Hogwarts. But this Harry? He was actively taking part in his family businesses, which apparently held much more than just that Trust vault. Hermione had seen him talk to Fred and George like a seasoned businessman, even when he was practically throwing the gold away. She had tried to convince him otherwise but he hadn’t changed his stance on the matter. And now this? The more she tried, the more Hermione realised that perhaps she didn’t know her friend at all.
So why was Ron having an easier time dealing with this when she was feeling suffocated by it? And why did this news about him donating a large sum of gold to Hogwarts and the basilisk’s victims constrict her throat instead of feeling a burst of pride for her friend’s golden heart? Because she could sense Greengrass, or perhaps Delacour’s role in this change? Was that why?
“But then again,” said Lavender. “You still don’t know one major thing. Will Harry even agree to teach in the first place?”
Hermione bit her lip. “I think I might have an idea that just might convince him.”
“You mean a person,” Ginny concluded, eyeing her.
Hermione frowned. “If that’s what it takes.”
